


We Are Family

by DaLiza



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Gen, Jemma Simmons & Skye | Daisy Johnson Friendship, Spoilers for 5x22, post 5x22
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-28
Updated: 2018-05-28
Packaged: 2019-05-14 16:09:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 964
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14772851
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaLiza/pseuds/DaLiza
Summary: Daisy comforts Simmons after the events of 5x22.





	We Are Family

Daisy stood outside the door to Simmons’s bunk, wondering if she should knock. She had thought that Simmons might want someone to talk to, but now she wasn’t so sure. Maybe Simmons would rather be alone.

Or was she only hoping that Simmons wanted to be alone because she had no idea what to say to her?

Daisy tried to remember the conversation she’d had with Simmons after Lincoln’s death. Had Simmons, with all her brilliance and Britishness, said anything that had made her feel better?

No, she hadn’t. She had tried, but no words, no matter how well-intentioned, would make the loss of someone you loved any easier.

But maybe she didn’t have to offer the usual platitudes about grieving and loss. Maybe offering a friendly ear would be enough.

Taking a deep breath, Daisy knocked on the door. “Simmons, it’s me. If you want to be alone, I totally understand. But if you want someone to talk to, I’m here.”

For several seconds, there was silence. Then she heard Simmons say softly, “Come in.”

Daisy opened the door and saw Simmons sitting on her bed, hugging her knees to her chest. Her phone lay at the foot of the bed and Simmons was staring at it. “Fitz’s mum called; I didn’t answer. She left a message. She said she saw on the news that S.H.I.E.L.D. was in Chicago. She wanted to know if Fitz and I were there and if we were okay. I’m guessing she tried to call Fitz’s phone first...” Tears ran down her cheeks. “I can’t tell her the truth. ‘I’m sorry, Bonnie, your only child is dead, but don’t worry! There’s another version of him floating around in space and we’ll find him someday!’”

“You don’t have to be the one to tell her. Mack is the director now, he could-“

Simmons shook her head. “No. Don’t have Mack say anything. Did you know that my parents called Fitz when I was on Maveth? He told them that they couldn’t reach me because I was deep undercover. He spared my parents from the truth; I owe it to him to do the same for his mum.” Simmons wiped away her tears with the back of one hand. “Bonnie was so excited when Fitz told her we were engaged! She started planning a big wedding for us in Glasgow and she asked if we were going to have...” Her voice broke. “If we were going to have children.”

Daisy hugged her. “I’m so sorry, Jemma.”

Simmons pulled away from her embrace. “I should have been there when he died! We promised we would never leave each other’s side. I might have been able to save him!”

Daisy put her hand on Simmons’s shoulder. “I read Mack’s report. There was nothing you could have done. His injury was too severe.”

“At least I would have been able to say goodbye. I could have held his hand one more time, kissed him one more time. He didn’t...he didn’t even know he was dying! Mack said that his last words were about his legs.” Simmons furiously wiped away more tears. “I can’t stop thinking: What would he have said if he knew?”

“He would have said ‘Tell Jemma I love her.’ No doubt in my mind.”

Simmons lowered her head, finding it easier to stare at her blankets than to meet her friend’s intense gaze. “I failed him, Daisy. He saved my life so many times, jumping through holes in the universe and traveling through time. I should have been there when he needed me. I’ll never forgive myself.”

“Fitz wouldn’t want you to spend the rest of your life torturing yourself. He’d want you to have your happily ever after. We’ll find the Fitz in space and you can have that big wedding Bonnie was planning. You can be a mom. You have a second chance to have everything you want, everything you deserve.”

“So you’re suggesting that I just forget about the Fitz who died and move on with the Fitz who lived?”

“It’s a pretty messed up situation, even by S.H.I.E.L.D. standards. But I’m not saying you forget him. None of us will ever forget Fitz’s sacrifice. Last night I overheard Mack and YoYo talking about starting a family someday. Mack said that if they have a son, he wants to name him Leo.”

“Fitz hated his first name; he associated it with his father’s verbal abuse...but I think he’d appreciate the sentiment.” Simmons started crying again. “I’ve been half of FitzSimmons since we were 16 years old, and now I’m just Simmons. I don’t know how to live without him. I’m so tired of pretending that I’m okay when all I want to do is scream at the cosmos for giving me a glimpse of a future with Fitz and then taking it away.”

Daisy was crying for her friend. “You don’t have to pretend anymore. You scream all you want and I’ll scream with you. I’m here for you, whatever you need.”

This time Simmons initiated a hug. “Thank you, Daisy.”

“No need to thank me. That’s what family is for.”

Simmons smiled through her tears. “You still consider me family after I disobeyed your orders?”

“You still considered me family when I turned my back on S.H.I.E.L.D. and became a vigilante, didn’t you?”

“Yes.”

“You never stopped caring about me, even when I was doing everything I could to push you away. So it will take more than the occasional mutiny to make me stop caring about you.”

Simmons hugged Daisy again. For the first time since Fitz’s death, she let herself cry until she had no tears left.


End file.
